Somewhat interesting.....This is some chatter between MII pilots....(I own an M1) Thorp T-18 was Widened which became the S-18 (think it was)....I remember a designer once saying that the widest point of the wing, should not be at (intersect with) the widest point on the fuselage......CldLk-Tim To maintain the pressure distribution curves the S-18 also had the fuselage lengthened by several inches with John Thorp?s blessing.
1) Not only speed but handling qualities can also be effected. 2) The simple addition of drag due to frontal area from the increased width frequently is not the sole cause. On the T-18, the "wide-body" Sunderland version was criticized by the designer because increasing the width failed to respect the balance of the pressure distribution curves that were diligently worked out (with lots of pre-computer based CFD calcs) at great effort. Since the flow was less "orderly" lots of separation drag resulted. An earlier comment (if I read it correctly) about leaving the fuselage sides flat can cause mischief with both drag and stall development. I offer this comment for consideration and discussion, not to present an opinion. Onward and upward Marc Bourget TC#5436 From: Wayne norris...@yahoo.com well.. gee that might just be where that 25mph went on my plane, the fatty, I kind of doubt it though. wayne with the 200mph M2.
